Ireland Is Set To Get Its First Centre Parcs Family Resort

Award-winning family holiday resort Center Parcs is coming to Ireland.

About 1,000 people, mostly aged 18-24, will be employed at the forest village near Ballymahon, County Longford when it opens in 2019. Management said about 750 construction jobs will be created while it is being built.

Martin Dalby, Center Parcs chief executive, said: “Since we announced our desire to bring the Center Parcs experience to Ireland last April, we have been overwhelmed by the positive support we have received at both local and national level and we are looking forward to forging ahead to bring our plans to fruition.”

Artist’s impression issued by Center Parcs of how the centre area of the Village Centre at their Longford Forest resort will look.

The 395-acre resort, Longford Forest, will have room for about 2,500 guests in 470 lodges, 30 apartments, treehouses, a spa, restaurants, cafes and a sub-tropical pool area with water rides.

The project involves an investment of about 230 million euro.

Center Parcs operates five short-break destinations in the UK at Whinfell Forest in Cumbria, Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, Elveden Forest in Suffolk, Woburn Forest in Bedfordshire and Longleat Forest in Wiltshire. It took in two million guests last year.

Prices for breaks in the Longford resort have not been advertised, but average costs for a Center Parcs stay run to thousands, with management saying families spend more on activities and food and drink than on their accommodation.

A family of four, with two children under five, can expect to pay from about 1,069 euro (£899) to 1,248 euro (£1,049) for four nights mid-week in a two-bed lodge in any of the UK resorts in July next year.